The EU fines Meta almost €800 million for ‘abuse’ in favor of the Facebook marketplace

The European Commission a fine on Thursday Meta almost €800 million for violating antitrust rules by automatically giving Facebook users access to Facebook Marketplacewhere the platform benefits from “abuse”.
The €797.72 million ($840.24 million) fine follows a lengthy investigation, which concluded that Meta had abused its dominant market position and engaged in anticompetitive behavior.
What the claimed the European Commission
“The European Commission has fined Meta… for infringement EU antitrust rules by tying it online advertisements Offering Facebook Marketplace to its personal social network Facebook and by imposing unfair trading conditions on other online advertising providers,” the European Commission said.
The European Commission accused the US tech company of abusing its market dominance by imposing unfavorable business conditions on competing online advertising services that advertise on its platforms.
Facebook introduced Marketplace in 2016 and expanded to several European countries the following year. The EU ruling states that Meta is unlawfully imposing Facebook Marketplace on Facebook users. However, Meta disputes this, stating that users have the choice to engage with Marketplace, while many choose not to.
According to the commission, Facebook Marketplace has gained an unfair “substantial distribution advantage” over competitors through its integration with Facebook.
“All Facebook users automatically access and are exposed to Facebook Marketplace on a regular basis, whether they want to or not,” the report said.
The commission also said Meta has created unfair conditions for competing advertising services on Facebook and Instagram.
This allowed Meta to “use advertising-related data generated by other advertisers solely for the benefit of Facebook Marketplace,” the company said.
What the company said
Meta has indicated that it will appeal while simultaneously working to implement a quick resolution that addresses the concerns raised. It disputed the ruling, saying it ignored “the reality of the thriving European market for online classified listing services.”
“Facebook users can choose whether or not to use Marketplace, and many don’t. The reality is that people use Facebook Marketplace because they want to, not because they have to,” the company said.
Meta highlighted that while the Commission suggested that Marketplace could potentially hinder the growth of established online marketplaces in the EU, it failed to provide evidence of actual harm from competitors.
Meta denied using advertisers’ data for such purposes, stating that they have systems and controls in place to prevent this.
“It is disappointing that the Commission has chosen to take regulatory action against a free and innovative service built to meet consumer demand,” the company added.
This action by the European Commission follows allegations two years ago that Facebook Marketplace received undue benefits from its integration with Facebook’s main service.
The European Union launched a formal investigation into Facebook’s potentially anti-competitive behavior in June 2021, followed by concerns in December 2022 about Meta connecting its dominant social network to its secret advertising services.
Meta reported a total turnover of approximately $135 billion (125 billion euros) last year.